The Strange Girl
by CoolKid94
Summary: When Haibara finds a lost little girl, she gives off a weird vibe. Who is this girl? Why does she seem to know about Conan, and why doesn't she warm up to him like Ayumi? And why does Conan have a bad feeling about all this... No Conan/OC romance
1. Lost!

Alright, this is another story I had an idea for. It'll probably be around ten chapters long, and will include several plot twists, and maybe a few crimes. Anyways, it is my hope that everyone reading will enjoy this story as much as I enjoy its idea.

Disclaimer: I do not own Detective Conan in any way, shape, or form. I only own the mysterious girl, as she's an OC.

* * *

><p>Chapter One<p>

A young girl ran down the street, looking for something familiar. Everything looked different than normal, though it was obviously the same. She saw a train station nearby and ran inside. She looked at the map to see Tokyo, and looked to see where she was and where her house was.

The reason she was so scared was that her cell phone wasn't working. Sure, she could turn it on, but it didn't have a signal, so it was useless. She couldn't call for her parents, and nothing looked familiar. In short, she was lost.

'Why,' she thought, 'did I go next door and try that machine?' She'd blacked out, and when she woke up, she was somewhere else, and she didn't know where.

The girl looked at the large map on the wall again. She found where it said 'You are here', and started looking for her house.

'It's over there,' she thought. 'The quickest way would be to take the train to Beika and walk. According to this, it's the tenth stop.'

The girl took out some money and prepared to buy a ticket. She put in the normal amount for a ticket, but a ton of change came out, and the girl frowned. 'Why is there so much change? Daddy showed me how to buy a ticket, and I just did. Why is it different?'

The girl got on the next train and went to Beika. At the eighth stop, though, five kids her age got on. There were three boys and two girls. A girl and two boys were chatting animatedly about something about 10 years old, and the girl just shrugged it off, not noticing that a boy in large glasses was looking at her curiously.

The five kids got off at Beika Station, and the girl followed them. She trudged towards home, and it started to rain heavily. The five kids immediately started running off towards their homes, but the girl didn't, since this neighborhood looked oddly unfamiliar.

Another thing that she thought was weird was that everybody was driving old models of cars, but she didn't really care about that. She just wanted to get home and out of this rain.

She finally turned down her street and went up the front gate. It was locked. Of course it would be; it was pouring rain! The girl climbed up the gate to turn the latch, but she was too short. She couldn't reach the buzzer either. So she sat down on the sidewalk miserably, pulled out a blanket, which expanded as soon as it was out of its wrapper, and huddled under it, waiting for morning, when her Mommy and Daddy would go to work and find her there.

* * *

><p>A typical start to a non-typical story. The girl's identity will come to light before long, and she makes friends with the five kids mentioned here. (Guess who <em>they<em> are) I've got a good plotline planned out, so expect to see some goodness come to light soon enough!


	2. Sodden Little Girl

The story still really hasn't picked up it's pace, but I drop clues about the girl's identity, so feel free to throw out some wild guesses! Oh, and please review! I'll appreciate it immensely!

* * *

><p>Chapter Two<p>

Haibara Ai came home late. She'd been out at some play with the other four, but Agasa hadn't come, and the play was for kids, and she was bored out of her mind. At least Conan was bored, too, and it gave her some pleasure in thinking that he was bored to death. On the way home, it had started pouring, and she'd come home soaking wet. She'd therefore taken a hot shower before even _thinking_ about doing anything else.

After cooking for Agasa-hakase and eating and cleaning up, she was so tired she skipped out on working on the antidote and just went to sleep. It was a horrid night after all, and if she didn't tell Conan, he wouldn't get mad at her about it.

The next morning, she was feeling a little sluggish, but at least she wasn't soaking wet anymore. She got ready, cooked breakfast, and got her stuff together, since it was Monday morning and she had school. Soon, she was ready to go, and started walking. But just as she was passing the Kudo Mansion next door, she noticed a small figure huddled under the nameplate.

She approached it, and realized it was a person. It was a small girl, around 6-7 years old. She was huddled under a blanket and was completely soaked. She was sleeping, her head against the wall, and she'd obviously been there all night.

Ai went and got Hakase, and they both approached the sleeping girl. Hakase said, "She reminds me of you, Ai-kun, though you were sprawled out."

Ai glared at him and said, "That's not funny, Hakase. We'd better get her inside."

Agasa picked the girl up and carried her inside, and Ai followed. The girl was put on the couch, and Ai removed her sodden clothes and replaced them with dry clothes of her own, and she also wrapped the girl in towels. Then she called Conan.

"Yeah, Haibara? Where are you?"

"At Hakase's. We found a sodden girl sleeping in front of your house, and we're tending to her. Tell Sensei I won't be at school today."

"Fine. By the way, was she in oversized clothes or anything?"

"No. She's obviously not a member of the Organization or a victim of APTX-4869, so don't worry. You can come by after she wakes up, but don't bring the other three."

"Alright, then. See you after school then." Conan hung up, and Ai put her phone back into her pocket. Ai then took a better look at the girl.

She was correct in assuming she was around 6-7 years old. She had shoulder-length black hair, and was obviously of Japanese descent, though there might've been some Western heritage somewhere along the line, if the lightness of her hair was any indication. Her hair was black, but it was a little lighter than normal. She looked kind of like Ai's sister Akemi when _she_ was that age, though the facial structure was a little different. She was well fed, and looked well off, if her sodden clothes were anything to judge by.

Ai realized that whatever was in the girl's pockets might be ruined from the rain, so she quickly emptied them, and put the clothes in the wash, along with the blanket she'd had. The girl had a used train ticket from the previous day, a TON of coins in a little change purse, a weird looking cell phone, and a small wallet with a lot of money inside, along with a few pictures, which Ai didn't look at, since it wasn't her business. She had a used plastic wrapper from something, too.

Ai just put all this stuff on the table next to the girl, got her laptop from the basement lab, and started working on the antidote to pass the time.

* * *

><p>The action picks up next time! The girl wakes up and I give her a name! And you find out about her background, maybe. I haven't decided. Anyways, look forward to it, and let me know what you think!<p> 


	3. Who are you?

Introductions are made, and the strange girl gets a name, and it's one fans of the series will recognize!

* * *

><p>Chapter Three<p>

Ai was startled out of her work by a groan around 3 hours later. The girl was starting to wake up. Ai put away the computer and went to the girl's side. She pulled up a chair and sat down, waiting. Soon the girl woke up. She opened her eyes, seemed to notice her unfamiliar surroundings, and sat bolt upright, looking around wildly.

"Don't worry," said Ai, "you're safe here. It's all right."

The girl looked around at Ai, and an unfamiliar emotion flickered across her face momentarily.

"Who are you? Where am I?"

"I am Haibara Ai. I found you sleeping in the rain and brought you inside. As for where you are you're at the house of one Agasa Hiroshi-san. The address is Beika Block 2 Number 22, Tokyo, Japan. Right next door to where I found you."

The girl looked thoughtfully around the room a minute. Then she turned back to Ai and asked, "What's today's date?"

Ai was startled by the odd question, but she replied, "March 7th".

"And the year? What's the day of the week?"

"The year? 2011. The day of the week? It's Monday. Why?"

The girl's eyes had flown open at Ai's answer, but she quickly suppressed it and said, "Oh, no reason. I was just curious as to how long I was sleeping. Thanks for helping me out, Haibara-san." She looked down at herself and asked, "Where are my clothes? Where's my stuff?"

"Your stuff is right here," said Ai, pointing at it. "Your clothes and your blanket were soaked, so I put them in the wash earlier."

"Oh. I see. Thank you!"

"What's your name, then? You don't seem like someone who would like to be called just 'girl'."

The girl looked hesitant for a moment before saying, "My name is Akemi!"

"What's your surname, then, Akemi-san?"

The girl paused some more before saying, "Fujimine. My full name is Fujimine Akemi!"

"Well, Fujimine-san, do you have anybody taking care of you?"

The girl froze momentarily before saying, "No. I'm an orphan. I make do with food people give me. I was outside that house because it looked unoccupied, but I couldn't reach the latch."

"I see."

"I'm sorry for putting you through so much trouble, Haibara-san. I'll leave as soon as my clothes come out of the wash."

Agasa-hakase suddenly entered and said, "You'll do no such thing! It's not very fitting for a pretty young girl like you to be out on the streets! You can stay here, unless you find somewhere else you want to go."

The girl brightened instantly. "REALLY, Hakase? I can stay here? Awesome!" She started jumping up and down on the sofa.

"Yeah," said Hakase, watching the girl's behavior with a grin, "you can stay here for as long as you want. Right, Ai-kun?"

"I guess so, since you have nowhere else to go. Just stay out of the basement, and my room, OK?"

"OK, Haibara-san!" sang Akemi cheerfully. She ran off, saying she wanted to explore the house.

* * *

><p>Anything in here you find odd is in there for a reason, but feel free to ask if you're curious. Next chapter is from Akemi's POV, and her background is partially confirmed. To anyone reading this, PLEASE review. After all, it's been three chapters, and I've only had 1-2, and I really like where this story is going! So please do so. Many thanks.<p> 


	4. What to do

Now to find out who Akemi really is! This chapter is in her POV, and briefly recaps the last chapter before progressing the story a little.

* * *

><p>Chapter Four<p>

Akemi, truthfully, was scared. She'd woken up in a house she'd been in many times in her life, but she'd never seen it looking so…_clean_. And then the voice had spoken up, and when Akemi looked over, she saw something she never thought she'd see.

It was Miyano Shiho, or Haibara Ai, which she'd been as ten years before when she'd taken that pill to get out of the evil Organization. Akemi knew so from all the tales that her father had told her about them, and all his adventures in trying to destroy them. After their defeat, she'd made that antidote and she and her Dad had come back to themselves.

After hearing Ai's name, Akemi had quickly processed all of this, and realized what must have happened. So she asked the date, and her suspicions were confirmed. She'd gone into the past ten years, at least. It explained why everything looked different, and why her phone didn't work. She knew no one would find them suspicious unless they did research, and she planned to not let that happen.

After hearing her stuff was still there, Ai had asked her about herself, and Akemi had had to do some quick thinking. She knew she couldn't tell her real name, or it would've been found out that she was the daughter of Kudo Shinichi, the famous police detective. So she used a name she'd heard her mother use sometimes. It was all she could think of on the spur of the moment.

For her surname, she couldn't say Kudo, so she used her grandma's maiden name: Fujimine. Then Ai had asked where she lived, where her guardians were, and other stuff and Akemi had panicked internally. If she told the truth, she wouldn't be believed, so she said she had no one. However, she'd always had everything, including a place to stay, and she really didn't want to go back on the streets, and was hoping to stay there.

Her opportunity came when she saw Agasa-hakase, looking much less bald then she remembered, approaching. So she made a show about how she was going to leave, hoping that Agasa would insist she stay, which he had. She'd slipped up, though, by addressing him as Hakase, when he hadn't even introduced himself yet, so she quickly excused herself. And now she was listening to the other two talk, using the eavesdropping skills her dad had taught her.

"She seems very lively!" said Agasa. "She's very cute, and rather intelligent, too."

"She's lying," said Ai flatly.

"Lying?" asked Agasa in disbelief. "How do you know?"

"She claimed to be an orphan, but orphans wandering the streets wouldn't be so well-mannered, nor as well fed as she is. My guess is she ran away from home, and doesn't want to be found. She paused several times during my questioning of her, indicating she was uncomfortable, and supplied us with fake information, probably including her name."

"So what do we do?"

"We call the police and ask them to put out a bulletin to report a runaway. That way, her parents should be able to find her and take her home. Though we'll have to alert many nearby prefectures as well. She had a ton of money on her, and she probably came from somewhere far, unless you think a little girl stuck up a bank."

"You may be right, Ai-kun. I'll call the police outside on my cell. You find Akemi-kun and keep her occupied."

Akemi, listening, grinned. They'd never find her parents because they didn't know they even _had_ a daughter.

"Fine. I just hope she isn't as lively as Ayumi-chan." Agasa got up and left and Ai got up to look for Akemi. Akemi acted like she'd just come back from exploring, and since she'd been in the house before, she knew its layout.

"Haibara-san!" shouted Akemi, walking into the living room. "This house is so big! And there's a ton of cool stuff in the back! It's like a mad scientist's laboratory!"

Ai just smirked and said, "I see you found Hakase's lab. He is a bit on the crazy side sometimes."

Akemi saw Ai's computer and pointed to it. "Do you do research, too?"

"I do some basic chemistry stuff, I guess. I try to help him out sometimes."

"Can I see it, then?" Akemi asked. She ran over and picked up the laptop, before opening it. Ai let her, since it was password protected and she knew the little girl couldn't get through it.

Ai watched the girl while she typed out passwords, trying to get in. The girl stopped for a minute, and then clicked on something and started typing again. Then she said, "Haibara-san, what is 'Apoptosis'?"

* * *

><p>Hah! A lot of mysteries were just cleared up, but more are on the way! Akemi is obviously the daughter of Shinichi, which explains her intelligence. She lives next door with her mom and dad. As to who her mom is, I'm purposely not saying anything until the end, nor am I going to tell you Akemi's real name until the end, and that's because it'll blow the ending. I've been dropping clues as to who her mom is, though, so you'll have to pick up on it. Here's a hint though: it's either Ran or Shiho.<p>

Anyways, if you're reading this, please review, and many thanks to those who have gotten around to it already! Next up, Conan bails out of school and meets Akemi! Will her cover be blown?


	5. Conan Meets Akemi

Conan gets impatient, and he meets Akemi! Maybe something will happen?

* * *

><p>Chapter Five<p>

Conan was bored again. He always was at school. The grade level work was just so _easy_. He always finished it early, so he was always bored. Ai always finished early, too, but she wasn't here today, so there was nobody to talk to, as all the other kids were still working. Conan then had an idea to get him out of the rest of another boring day.

He tried it out during recess, which was right after lunch at noon. He shot himself with his own tranquilizer dart. He snapped the lid shut on his watch before he fainted completely.

Conan woke up thirty minutes later in Doctor Araide's office.

"How are you feeling, Conan-kun?" asked Araide, when he saw Conan awake.

"I'm OK I guess. What happened?"

"You fainted earlier. But you seem fine now. Are you sure you feel fine?"

"I feel kind of OK, but my brain feels like mush, and I don't think I'll be able to concentrate on any more work today. Do you think I could go home and rest?"

"I guess so. Sign out in the main office, and I'll take you home."

Conan did so, and Araide drove away with him. "Where do you want to go?"

"Hakase's house!" said Conan. Araide didn't question him, and simply took him there.

After Araide had driven away, Conan went inside, pleased with himself. He went into the living room, and was met with a _very_ weird sight. Ai was trying to wrest a laptop away from a very lively little girl, around their age. Conan deduced that she was the girl Ai had found that morning, since she was dressed in Ai's clothes. Ai finally got the computer away, and Conan saw complex chemical formulas before it was snapped shut hastily.

Ai suddenly saw him and said, "Edogawa-kun! You're here early. How'd you get away?"

Conan, who was eyeing the girl, said, "Doctor's order. He said I should rest after I fainted earlier." He pointed at his watch, and Ai got the true message.

"By the way, who are you?" he asked, directing the question towards Akemi.

"I'm Akemi-desu! Who are you?"

Conan offered his hand and said, "I'm Edogawa Conan. I'm a friend of Haibara's."

Akemi shook his hand warmly and said, "Pleased to meet you. Haibara-san never said she had a boyfriend."

Conan just smirked and said, "She never said that because I'm _not_ her boyfriend. I'm just one of her classmates."

Ai watched the exchange with interest. They looked kind of alike, she thought. They even had the same eye color. The two let go, and Conan said, "So, Akemi-chan, where are you from?"

"Haido."

Conan looked at Ai, but she was busy going through the computer to assess the damage done, and to change her password. He asked, "So why are you here?"

"I don't really have a home, so when it was raining last night, I saw the house next door looked deserted, and I tried to get in, but I couldn't."

"So you live in Haido?"

"I was just born in Haido. I was abandoned by my parents years ago, and I live on my own. So technically I'm an orphan."

Conan realized that if she _did_ have a past, she wasn't going to spill it. So he asked, "Do you have any hobbies, then?"

"Yeah! I love reading detective stories, and I love playing soccer, too! I like science too, especially when things go 'BOOM!'."

"How do you know about any of that if you're an orphan?" Conan asked, after deciding to drill her to find out the truth.

Akemi flinched internally. Then she said, "I read books that people lose, and I like ones with mysteries the best. I found vinegar and baking soda once, and I thought putting them together was really cool, and made me like science."

"Oh," said Conan. She'd given a decent explanation, which meant she was either telling the truth or a really good liar. But what she said had raised another question. "How'd you learn to read then?"

"I had to in order to read the signs lying around. I had to teach myself so I could live. Though I can't read a lot of hard kanji at _all_."

Conan gave up on that and asked, "When's your birthday?"

"20th of April. Why are you quizzing me so much? Do you think I'm a liar?" She teared up, and Conan immediately changed his tune.

"No, of course not. I was just curious about you. Do you want me to stop?"

"Yes. It's hard enough thinking about my past without someone making me relive it."

"Suit yourself. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

"It's all right. Do you have any other friends?" Akemi was determined to keep herself away from the main topic of conversation.

"Yeah, there are three others. Their names are Yoshida Ayumi, Tsuburaya Mitsuhiko, and Kojima Genta. The five of us form the Detective Boys!"

Ai rolled her eyes at this, since Conan acting childish always creeped her out. Then Akemi asked something that freaked both of them out.

"Conan-kun, you're Haibara-san's best friend, right? So why don't you call her by her first name?"

Ai looked at her and said, "Edogawa-kun is NOT allowed to call me by my first name. Nor is anyone else, besides Ayumi-chan."

Suddenly the phone rang, and Ai answered it.

"Hello…Oh, Mouri-san?...Yes, he's here…Sure, he can talk. Edogawa-kun, phone call!"

Conan picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Conan-kun, Araide-sensei called and said you fainted earlier. Are you all right?"

"Yeah. Araide-sensei took me to Hakase's. I'm here resting up."

"Well, I'll come pick you up later, then. Don't get into too much trouble. Bye."

She hung up, and Conan did likewise. Then he turned to Ai. "Haibara, shouldn't you get some clothes for Akemi-chan? She can't wear yours forever."

"I guess so. Would you like to go shopping, Akemi-chan?"

Akemi looked suddenly nervous and said, "I guess so."

"Then we'll go right away," said Ai, not unkindly. She took Akemi by the hand, and they soon left, after Akemi had put all her stuff away. She'd left the plastic wrapper, though, and Conan looked at it.

'Odd. I've never seen anything like this.' The wrapper said _PORTABLE BLANKET: IT CAN BE USED ANYWHERE! _'There are blankets like this out there,' thought Conan, 'but I've never seen one _this_ compact, and I've never heard of this brand. I wonder who that girl is, and where she got this.'

* * *

><p>Now Conan's suspicious of her. Next chapter, Conan and Haibara compare theories! Look forward to it!<p>

Note: Due to the low number of reviews, I'm tempted to end the story somewhere in the middle. If you want to chime in with your opinion about this, please review and say so! Or, you can PM me, since I left a review to this story myself. You can reply to my review and chime in!


	6. Akemi Meets Ran

Due to overwhelming responses for continuance, I have decided to do so! To tell the truth, though, I wasn't really planning on quitting; I just wanted to know if anyone liked the story or not. With all that out of the way, please enjoy the chapter!

* * *

><p>Chapter Six<p>

Akemi and Ai came home later with several shopping bags. Akemi had paid for all her clothes herself with the money she'd had, and went into a bedroom to change.

"Kudo-kun, there's something up with that girl."

"I know. I found that plastic wrapper she had, and compared it to what's on the market. It's not sold anywhere. That means it's homemade, but it looks professional."

"That's not the only weird thing. When I asked about her earlier, like her name, she hesitated for a moment. She also asked me the date, including the year and the day of the week."

"What do you think, then?"

"I think she's a runaway. She looks well off, and she has a ton of money. She probably belongs to a wealthy family, and then ran away and came here to Tokyo. I don't know why she stayed outside your house though, and in the pouring rain."

"Did you call the police?"

"Of course. Hakase said they put out a bulletin around the country for her, so we'll just have to wait and see. But we need to get rid of her fast. She unnerves me."

"How so?"

"She completely bypassed all my password protection on my computer, and saw my research."

"So _that's _why you were fighting over the computer."

"Plus her name bothers me, too. It's not her first name; Akemi is a well-used name. It's her last name, too."

"Odd, she never told me it. What is it?"

"She told me it was Fujimine. It's what bugs me. I think I've heard it before."

"It was Mom's maiden name. Maybe that's where you heard it. Anyway, we don't know anything about this girl, so we'll have to give her the benefit of the doubt until something happens. She _does_ look familiar…though."

"See? You recognize her, too!"

They were discussing this when the door opened and Ran came in.

"Conan-kun!" she said, running up and hugging him. "You worried me so much, but you look fine! _Please_ don't scare me like that!"

Conan got loose and said, "I'll try not to, Ran-neechan!"

Ran noticed Ai and said, "Ai-chan, why are you home? I thought your school didn't let out for a while."

Ai was about to answer when Akemi suddenly rushed in. She saw Ran and stopped.

"Oh, who's this?" asked Ran curiously.

"Oh, I'm Akemi!" said Akemi happily. "Who are you?"

"I'm Mouri Ran. Conan-kun lives with me and my father."

"Well, nice to meet you, then, Ran-san!" They shook hands.

Ran turned to Conan and said, "Conan-kun, it's time to go home." She looked at Conan in such a way that he knew that arguing would be futile, so he consented, and the two of them left.

* * *

><p>More clues dropped as to who her mother is, as both candidates were in the same room. Akemi goes to school next chapter and meets three enthusiastic children! (And maybe some humor?) In any case, look forward to it, and please continue reviewing, if you wish to do so!<p> 


	7. Soccer Match: Akemi vs Conan

Now for Akemi to meet up with the three kids! There's also some humor later on! Also, I appreciate everyone's reviews, and I also appreciate that you all enjoy reading my author's notes!

* * *

><p>Chapter Seven<p>

As Akemi had predicted, the police never called them with leads on where her parents were. After a week, Agasa decided to send her to school, and Akemi was glad to have something to do.

Ai walked her to the office, and went with her to class after she'd confirmed that Akemi was going to school there now. When they reached their classroom, 1-B, she told Akemi to wait in the hall until she was called inside.

Soon enough, the teacher did. When she walked in, there were immediate intakes of breath, and whispers started circulating around the room.

"Class!" exclaimed Miss Kobayashi, getting their attention immediately, "this is Fujimine Akemi-san. Please make her feel welcome. Now, Akemi-chan, where should you sit?"

Miss Kobayashi took a look around the room, and then said, "How about you sit next to Ayumi-chan? Ayumi-chan, raise your hand please."

Akemi saw where the girl was, and sat down next to her. She actually hadn't needed for her to wave, since Ayumi looked just like she would in the future, just a lot younger. She looked around and saw Mitsuhiko and Genta sitting around her, looking at her with interest. Along one wall, she saw Conan and Ai sitting next to each other, looking bored.

Ayumi turned around and said, "I'm Ayumi, Akemi-chan. Nice to meet you!" she sounded really happy to have a new seatmate.

"Nice to meet you too, Ayumi-chan!" Akemi said happily. They then turned back around and listened to the day's lesson. Akemi was having fun. They material might've been a bit easy, but at least it wasn't _too_ easy. She enjoyed all the creative stuff they did, too, though she had to keep catching herself to make sure she didn't write her real name on anything. She knew if she did that there would be a lot of awkward questions.

After school, Akemi was changing her shoes at the shoe lockers when Ayumi came up to her, along with Mitsuhiko and Genta. Conan and Ai were standing in the background. "Akemi-chan! I'd like to introduce you to my friends. This is Mitsuhiko-kun, Genta-kun, Conan-kun, and Ai-chan. Each one nodded to her when their name was mentioned.

Ayumi continued, "Akemi-chan, since you're new here, we were wondering if you might like to join our club. It's the Detective Boys. We solve all sorts of difficult cases!" Ayumi said proudly, and Mitsuhiko and Genta looked proud, too. Akemi noticed that Conan was rolling his eyes and Ai was looking on with amusement.

"What do you all do, then?"

"People come to us with hard cases for us to solve, and we solve them for them. We've done everything from lost cats to kidnappings, and we've even caught murderers!"

"Sounds fun!" exclaimed Akemi excitedly. "I'll join up!" Akemi was glad for a distraction, especially if it was detective work. She'd inherited her love for sleuthing from her dad, and she'd even started a similar club at her school in the future, which just so happened to be this same school.

"All right then!" exclaimed Ayumi excitedly. "Let's check for cases!" Genta opened his shoe locker, but all it had were his shoes. All three looked downcast. "Nothing…" they said miserably.

Conan came up and said, "Then how about we go play soccer?"

The kids brightened and said, "Let's go!" They ran out of the school, dragging Akemi along.

Conan and Ai were walking behind the others on the way to the park.

Ai said, "Any luck on finding out Akemi-chan's past?"

"No," said Conan glumly. "No one's called the police claiming she's their kid. So if she _did_ run away, she ran away from someone who didn't want her. But that would contrast with her personality. She's always happy, and never seems sad, though she does look towards the sky sometimes, looking wistful."

"Something's weird, though," said Ai. "Akemi-chan's very intelligent. She's obviously not over 6-7 years old, since she would have finished that test earlier around the same time we did. She finished a few minutes before the other kids, but well after we did. And she joined the Detective Boys so rapidly, even after Ayumi-chan said we've caught murderers. Normally, a kid would shy away from that."

"I agree. There's something _very_ odd."

They walked in silence the rest of the way, lost in their own thoughts. When they got to the park, Akemi was waiting for them. She quickly divided them off into two teams of three. It was Genta, Akemi, and Mitsuhiko on one team, with Ayumi, Conan, and Ai on the other. Ai and Genta were the goalies, and Conan prepared himself for an easy, boring match.

Soon the game started, and it was a mad dash for the ball. Conan got it, and started dribbling it towards Genta's goal, but was suddenly cut off by Akemi, who stole the ball. Conan was surprised. He'd had ten years more experience than any of the kids, but the ball had just gotten stolen from under his nose!

Akemi and Mitsuhiko passed the ball back and forth, heading towards Ai's goal. Ai had always taken goalie whenever she played on Conan's team because she knew that Conan would keep the ball on the other side. So she was surprised to see Akemi and Mitsuhiko coming towards her with a red-faced Conan in hot pursuit. Suddenly, Ayumi came out of nowhere and stole the ball just as Akemi was aiming it towards the goal. She passed it to Conan, who took it towards Genta again, before scoring.

The game went on like this for a while. Conan and Akemi were constantly stealing the ball from each other, and were running back and forth like madmen. Ayumi and Mitsuhiko wore themselves out chasing the other two, and had to excuse themselves from the game multiple times to catch their breath.

After about 45 minutes, the score was tied, and neither of them was calling it quits. Ai could see Conan's face wrinkled in concentration, and she knew that he was actually enjoying the challenge of not having an easy game for once.

Eventually, the sun started setting, and the game had to be called off. Conan and Akemi met at the center, shook hands, and said, "Good game." Then everyone went home.

Ai asked Conan, "You enjoyed yourself, then?"

"You bet!" said Conan brightly. "Akemi-chan's _good_. Nearly as good as me, which is weird considering all the extra practice I've had."

"10 years worth," said Ai, agreeing. "It _is_ weird. She must have had a teacher show her how to play from a very young age."

"Indeed. No one could get that good from living on the streets, especially if they were teaching themselves. She's hiding something. Something _big_."

* * *

><p>More proof Akemi's hiding something! Next up, Kid sends a note, and there's a crime? (Of course there is, it's Detective Conan!) Look forward to reading about how Akemi goes about solving it and taking Conan's spotlight (again)! And please continue reviewing, and submit ideas about where you want the story to go and who Akemi's mom is!<p> 


	8. The Bank Robbery and Kid's Note

Kid releases a manifesto, and there's a flashback of a crime, which takes place within the time skip in this chapter.

* * *

><p>Chapter Eight<p>

When Conan came home red-faced and sweating, Ran immediately sent him to take a bath, promising to feed him afterwards. When he came in to eat, Ran wondered why Conan was so cheerful.

"Did something happen, Conan-kun?"

"Nothing much. I just played soccer at the park with everyone."

"You won again?"

"No, the teams tied."

Ran was speechless. Either Conan was off his game, or someone as good as him had been on the other team for something like _that_ to happen.

"How were the teams split then?"

"It was Genta, Mitsuhiko, and Akemi-chan on the other team, with Ayumi-chan and Haibara on mine."

"Why'd you tie, then? You usually win without a fight."

"Akemi-chan. She's easily as good as I am, and it was a real challenge to keep the ball long enough to score. When we had to quit, the score was tied."

Ran had always known that Conan and Shinichi were similar, and she knew how Shinichi would react in this situation. He'd be really happy that there was a challenger, and apparently Conan was like that too. It completely explained why Conan was so happy, and she decided to tease him about it.

"AW!" exclaimed Ran, "Conan-kun has a crush! How cute!"

Conan glared at her and said, "Ran-neechan! I don't have any more of a crush on her than I do on Ayumi-chan or Haibara!"

"Fine, fine," said Ran, brushing it off. "I just assumed so because you two were so evenly matched, and you seemed so happy."

Conan glared at her again, and then went and got a book to read. He was interrupted by the TV's announcement.

'_Breaking news! The Kaito Kid has put out a new notice for a heist! Kid Taskforce Head Nakamori Ginzo says the note is legitimate, though he was unavailable for comment on anything else.' _

The announcer went on to something else, and Conan was left wondering about Kid was up to _this_ time.

He soon found out. The upcoming Kid heist was all anyone could talk about, both teenagers and kids. The heist notice had never made it to the news, so Conan had no clue what was going on. All he knew was that there was a heist coming up.

Conan was walking home after school a few days later when Akemi ran up to him.

"Conan-kun!"

"Akemi-chan!" He ignored Ayumi's jealous look as well as Ai's amused smirk. "What's up?"

"I have a copy of Kid's heist note! Here, let me find it…" She took out her cell phone and started pressing buttons, looking through the stuff stored on it. "Here it is!" She showed Conan a photo of a heist note.

"Is this the real thing?"

"Yeah! I got Sato-keiji to send it to me. Apparently she took an interest in me after we caught those robbers the other day."

Conan looked at it. It sure _looked_ real, and Akemi wouldn't have anything to gain by showing him a fake notice, and the robbery she mentioned _had_ happened.

_Flashback_

Conan was talking with Akemi about the soccer game while walking home from school. The other four had already left them behind, since they were bored to death by the endless soccer talk.

"Akemi-chan, how'd you get so good at soccer?"

"The same way as you, I guess: practice. I took an interest in it years ago, and I started teaching myself how to play. Kicking soccer balls hard is a _really_ good defense against bullies, too."

"So you never had any special training or anything?"

"No. Did _you_ have any?"

Conan hadn't, since he'd had ten years to practice, so he said, "No, I didn't. I just practiced."

"See? That's why we're evenly matched!" Akemi kept walking, oblivious to the fact that Conan's face had become awestruck. He'd never been _that_ good when he was her age the first time, so if she was telling the truth, she'd become a better player than he could _ever_ be, no matter if he went back to normal or not.

Conan said, "I have to pick up some money for Ran-neechan. Want to come with me?" He pointed to a nearby bank.

"Sure, Conan-kun! I've never seen someone withdraw money before!" With that they both went into the bank. The teller recognized Conan immediately, and knew how mature he was, so she just asked him for how much he wanted.

Conan told her, and while he was waiting for it, there was a loud bang. A gang of robbers had come in, and the bank was held up.

They all wore ski gear and ski masks, and they all had pistols. The leader shouted out, "DON'T ANYBODY MOVE! IF YOU DO, YOU'LL BE SORRY!" He fired off the gun again to prove his point, provoking more screams.

Conan moved in front of Akemi, who he noticed hadn't screamed, but was looking at the robbers in determination. They both knew they couldn't do anything with a ton of big guys pointing guns at them, so they just moved and stood by the outer wall, waiting for their chance to strike.

There were three robbers. Akemi formulated a plan, and leaned over to tell it to Conan.

"Conan-kun," she whispered, "I think I know how to get us out of here. Here's what we could do…"

Two minutes later, the head robber was startled to hear commotion from behind him. He spun around to see both his bodyguards, who had been blocking the doors, collapse. Then a little boy with glasses kicked a soccer ball at his face, and he remembered no more.

Ten minutes later, the police arrived. The three suspects were cuffed, all of them unconscious.

"Who did this?" Inspector Megure asked a woman nearby.

She pointed, "Those two kids," she said weakly. She was obviously still in shock.

Megure figured he'd know the two kids, and he was only partly disappointed. He saw Conan first, with a girl he didn't know, but she looked familiar. Detective Sato, who was with him, went over and questioned them.

"So, what happened?" she asked Conan, expecting him to give a detailed explanation. She was surprised when the girl spoke up.

"Conan-kun and I knocked the three bad guys out! They came in and pulled out some guns. Two guys went and blocked the door, and the other guy went up to the counter to get the money. Conan-kun and I knocked out the two guards, and when the guy at the counter turned around, Conan-kun knocked _him_ out, too!"

"Impressive. You really did all that yourselves?"

"Yeah!" said Akemi cheerfully, nodding to what Sato's said.

"By the way," said Sato, "who are you, anyway? Conan-kun's girlfriend?"

The girl shook her head viciously and said, "I'm not his girlfriend! I'm Fujimine Akemi. I'm a classmate of Conan-kun's."

Sato finished talking with Akemi and Conan, and went away to file a report. She was used to Conan's catching criminals, and found nothing strange.

_End Flashback_

That incident had informed Conan that Akemi was _not_ a normal little girl. Her behavior clearly said she _was_, but she was too intelligent to be an orphan from the streets. Sato had clearly been impressed by Akemi, and it was no surprise she'd let her have something like this Kid notice, though how she'd gotten it from Nakamori in the first place was beyond Conan.

Conan took a look at the notice and said, "According to this, he's stealing a gem from Beika Jewelers at 10:45 PM next Saturday night. Likely a red gem, and probably big, if his recent heists are anything to judge by." Conan made a mental note to be there that night.

* * *

><p>All right, Conan's even <em>more<em> suspicious now. I'll go into more detail about the robbery in the next chapter. Also, the next chapter is the majority of the Kid heist, and features the appearance of Snake.


	9. Kid's Heist and an Unwanted Visitor

It starts out as Akemi's POV, and then it goes into the Kid heist. I have the entire Kid heist in here, and Snake shows up! He might be a bit OOC, but I'm justifying it.

WARNING: To progress this story, a character must die. You have been warned!

* * *

><p>Chapter Nine<p>

Akemi was starting to enjoy living in the past. She helped her father out with his cases, and she'd even impressed him! Firstly was the soccer. Her Dad had taught her how to play from a young age, after she'd developed an interest in it. He'd also started teaching her how to be a detective, and after he'd deemed her 'well on the way', she'd started the Detective League at school.

The soccer game the other day she'd enjoyed immensely. Conan was easily as good as her, though if he'd been a teenager, she wouldn't have stood a chance. She'd enjoyed having an opponent as good as she was, and it was obvious Conan had, too.

The bank heist had been good practice, too. After she'd explained her plan to Conan, which entailed incapacitating the two guards, and then the leader, Conan had said, "Akemi-chan, how do you suppose we do that?"

"Conan-kun, don't be silly! We knock them out with the tranquilizers in our watches, of course! Then you can use those shoes of yours to knock out the third guy! It's flawless!" And it had been. In truth, though, Akemi hadn't used the tranquilizer watch, since she didn't have one. There was a hidden feature in her cell phone that shot the darts hidden inside, of which she could hold five at a time, courtesy of the future Agasa-hakase. She and Conan had knocked out the guards as easy as she said it would be, and she could tell Conan was intrigued by her, if not impressed.

She decided to use the leverage given by Sato to help out Conan even more. Sato hadn't really sent her anything, but Akemi had a photo of that particular heist note on her phone that she'd downloaded off the internet a while back, and showed it to Conan. She'd written about Kid for a history report to get back at her Dad for not taking her to see the Japanese subtitled version of an American detective movie about Sherlock Holmes. So that's why she had the photo.

Akemi was looking forward to watching the heist, since Kid had retired before Akemi was old enough to go to a heist herself. Then she noticed something: the heist was eerily familiar. Akemi took out her phone, and read up on what would happen. Then she saw something in a newspaper article she'd downloaded, and her eyes grew wide. She rushed towards the nearest phone to warn Conan.

* * *

><p>Conan arrived at the museum with Ran and Kogoro on Saturday night. Nakamori was outside ordering men around, and was totally <em>shocked<em> to see the three of them there.

"Oi! What are _you_ doing here? How'd you find out anyways?"

"The brat told us," said Kogoro. "He looked at the note and knew the when, the where, and the what. So we came to catch him."

Nakamori still looked mad. "How'd you find out about the note, though? It wasn't even _seen_ by anyone except me and my most trusted men!"

Conan's eyes narrowed. Sato was in Division 1, so if what Nakamori said was true, then it was impossible for her to have seen it. Then how did Akemi get that picture?

Nakamori said, "Well, if you're here, I guess I can't really send you away. Just be careful."

"Careful?" asked Ran. "Careful of what?"

Nakamori whispered, "The reason we didn't announce this to the media is that we got _another_ note, too. It simply said, _'Beware those who wish to act as gods, and wear bulletproof vests. Kaito Kid'_. We had no idea what it meant, but we're taking precautions just in case, and that included keeping the fans away."

Conan's eyes narrowed again. Kid never sent two notices. That meant that Kid expected danger, and they'd all do well to stay on their guard.

They went inside and looked around. There were two skylights, but they were guarded by lasers, and Kid couldn't get through then easily. The store was typical for a jewelry store, except for the large jewel in the middle. It was blood red and mounted on a pedestal.

All the cops loitering around had red pinch marks on their faces, so Conan assumed _they_ weren't Kid. Nakamori then proceeded to do the same to Kogoro and Ran, though they both passed, and unleashed the world on him.

It was 10:30, so Conan took up a vantage point across the room. He had a handkerchief on hand in case Kid decided to use sleeping gas again. Ran and Kogoro were still discussing with Nakamori about what Kid's warning might mean.

Suddenly, he got a phone call.

"Hello?"

"Conan-kun? It's Akemi-desu."

"Oh, Akemi-chan! Is something up?"

"I…I just have a bad feeling about tonight. I'd feel better if you left the heist and came home. Mouri-tantei and Ran-neechan, too."

"You know I can't leave. It's Kid! He needs to be unmasked, and I've been looking forward to catching him for a while."

"Well…if you're not leaving, then I'm coming to you." The phone went dead, and Conan was left staring at it in wonder.

Ten minutes later, everyone was ready for Kid. Nakamori was looking at his watch, counting down the time until Kid came. At 10:45 precisely, the lights went out. Pink smoke billowed out, and Kid appeared on the pedestal, holding the scarlet jewel.

"KID!" roared Nakamori. "He made desperate grabs towards Kid, but Kid was keeping out of reach. Then Kid sprayed sleeping gas, and with a quick 'Bye, Keibu!' had disappeared.

Conan immediately held the handkerchief over his mouth, and he saw Nakamori and Kogoro doing the same. Kid had disappeared somewhere, and Conan was left wondering where he went. Soon everyone woke up, but Kid had completely vanished. Conan realized that for Kid to escape, he probably used the sleeping gas to incapacitate the guards so he could reach the roof, where he could escape with his hang glider.

Conan ran into the back of the store for the ladder leading to the roof. Then he stopped and hid. Kid was there in the back room, but he was surrounded by men in black, and they all had guns aiming at him.

The leader stepped forward and said, "Well, well, look at what we have here: a Kid trapped by the adults. Give back the toy Kid, and we might make your death less painful."

Kid looked at the guy defiantly and said, "You'll never have the jewel, Snake, of that I'll make sure. Then there was another cloud of sleeping gas, but all the men whipped on gas masks. Conan saw Kid slip out of the crowd and run back into the store, since his roof access was blocked. Conan was intrigued by these men. They wore black, but the name Kid had mentioned, Snake, wasn't an alcohol, so Conan figured they were a part of another criminal organization. There were about five men, and Conan knew he could never take them on alone. He didn't get a chance to either, since the men slipped out the back door.

Conan went back into the store. Nakamori had barred off the front entrance, and he knew he figured Kid was somewhere in there. He then told everyone to line up for a face check, but no dice. Conan reasoned that Kid was sporting his real face, just under some kind of maskless disguise.

Nakamori had just finished checking everyone's faces when suddenly, the rear door flew open, and about 20 armed men forced their way in, the guy from earlier, Snake, in the lead. Snake grabbed Nakamori and said, "EVERYONE DROP YOUR WEAPONS NOW OR THIS GUY GETS A BULLET IN THE BRAIN!"

All the cops immediately dropped their guns. Then Snake said, "KAITO KID! I KNOW YOU'RE IN HERE! GIVE ME THE JEWEL NOW AND THE INSPECTOR WILL BE ALLOWED TO LIVE."

Conan, listening, knew Kid didn't want to give up the jewel, but under the circumstances, he had no choice to. Conan was watching all of this when he felt a light tap on his shoulder. He spun around to see Akemi, looking around fearfully.

"Akemi-chan! How'd you get in here?"

"I slipped in through the back a minute ago, right before these guys showed up. I still can't believe no one's realized the cops in the back were _murdered_ yet."

Conan was about to reply, but was cut off by a guy in black hitting Snake on the head from behind. Everyone knew immediately who and where Kid was. Nakamori got away from the bleeding Snake, and a gunfight ensued between the criminals and the cops. Everyone unarmed dove behind the display cases to avoid the gunfire and ricocheting bullets. They were Ran, Kogoro, Conan, and Akemi. Everyone else was fighting. Conan soon went out to help, and soon soccer balls were flying everywhere, supplied by his belt.

Soon, black-clothed guys were dropping like flies, picked off by Conan and his deadly soccer balls. Soon, only Snake was left, and he was in the middle of the room, trapped by a ring of bloody cops. Kogoro, Ran, and Akemi came out of hiding since the shooting had stopped, and stood up, though they were still behind the display case. Akemi got on top of the case to see better.

Snake had the look of a wild man. He looked in his gun, saw one bullet left, and knew the only thing he could do was to make an impression before he was inevitably arrested. He looked around and picked what he thought was the easiest target. And then he leveled the gun at them and pulled the trigger.

Conan looked on in horror as the bullet sped towards the person he least wanted it to go towards: Ran. Suddenly, though, Akemi jumped in the way, and the bullet hit her square in the chest. Then a _very_ odd event occurred. They all saw the bullet hit Akemi, but it was Ran that fell, mortally wounded with a bullet in the heart. Akemi didn't have a scratch on her. Snake got dog-piled by everyone, but Conan and Kogoro were by Ran's side.

"Ran-neechan! Ran! Ran!" Conan was desperate, and he forgot he was supposed to be acting like a kid. Kogoro was shouting her name, too, but they both knew it was too late. It was only a matter of time.

"Dad, Co…Conan-kun, I…I'm sorry. I…I should've been more…more cautious." Her voice was quivering from the pain of the bullet hitting her, and loss of blood. "Conan…Conan-kun, will you do me a…a favor? Tell Shinichi for me that…that I love him." Ran gasped again, and coughed up blood, before addressing Kogoro. "Dad? Will you do me a favor, too? Will…will you get back together with Mom? Please?" Kogoro just nodded solemnly, and Ran smiled. And then she stopped breathing.

* * *

><p>WHAT THE HECK? Why did I just kill off Ran? Why did Akemi not have a scratch on her? All will be answered in due time, and my apologies to any ShinRan fans. I'll let you in on a secret, though: Ran comes back at the end!<p>

Next chapter is the funeral, and Akemi starts telling the truth about herself.


	10. Doc, I'm from the Future!

Now to wrap up a few loose ends. The funeral is in this chapter, and Akemi confesses to who she is. My continued apologies to anyone who disliked the last chapter.

* * *

><p>Chapter Ten<p>

Conan and Kogoro were _devastated_. They didn't have anyone to take revenge on either, since Snake was in jail. Conan was completely silent for the next few days, and didn't really talk to anybody.

Akemi had been taken to the hospital, but she'd been diagnosed as perfectly fine, even though everyone _swore_ she'd been hit by the bullet. She was taken back to Agasa's house by a very relieved Hakase the next morning.

Akemi was miserable, though. She'd put her life on the line, but the bullet had gone _through_ her without leaving a mark. Such a thing was scientifically impossible. Ai had listened to the girl's story, through her tears, and had run a few examinations of her own, but nothing came up.

Ran's funeral was held a week after she'd died. Everyone she knew had come, as well as the entire Kid Taskforce. Kid had come, too, though he came in disguise, and was not recognized by anyone. After the minister said a few words, Kogoro came to the stage to say something, but soon had to be carted off by Eri after he broke down in tears. Shinichi had been asked to come, too, but Conan had declined, saying that as much as he wanted to, he wouldn't be speaking, since it was a very public event, and he didn't know if Gin and Vodka were lurking nearby.

Sonoko gave a very tearful speech, and then everyone put flowers on the casket. No one noticed that Conan put two identical flowers on the coffin, signed by two different people. Soon the coffin was taken to the cemetery for burial, and everyone went home.

A few days after that, Conan got up the nerve to leave the apartment, though he didn't go far. He went to Agasa's house. He was met by Ai and Akemi, and they let him let everything out. Then they brought Conan into the living room, and Ai came back a few minutes later with tea, which Conan took, but didn't drink.

Then he seemed to notice who was there. Ai and Akemi were standing over him, with identical looks of sympathy, and Agasa was standing over them, doing the exact same thing. Conan was sad, but he brought himself to take a sip, and all three relaxed. Then Conan noticed Akemi looking like she was about to cry.

"Akemi-chan, what's wrong?"

"It's just…I was right _there_, but the bullet didn't hit me. It acted like I was empty air. _I _should be the one dead, I'd be missed a lot less, and…" She stopped, and started crying some more. Then she said, "I was the only one who _could've_ stopped it." She said it in a voice so faint it was almost unintelligible.

She sat down and said, "Why do the laws of physics always abandon you when you most want them not to? First mommy and daddy and now me… I guess my family isn't supposed to die before their time."

All three had raised their eyebrows at this. Conan forgot his sadness in the face of this mystery: why did Akemi talk about her parents so intimately, and in such a loving tone? She'd said she'd been abandoned. He looked at Ai, and she went up and sat next to Akemi.

"Why did you say you were the only one who could've stopped the tragedy?" Ai asked, not unkindly. The two guys sat down across from them.

"Because…" Akemi paused, and then said, "I was the only person who knew what was going to happen!"

"You mean you can see the future?"

"No. That's impossible."

"Then how did you know then?" asked Ai curiously.

Akemi paused, but then just sighed and said, "I guess I can't keep it from you guys forever. You'll find out the truth eventually."

"The truth of what, Akemi-chan?" asked Conan curiously.

"The truth is I…I'm from the future." Akemi said, in a tone that told everyone she was _not_ making it up. "That's how I know. I did a whole lot of research on Kid, and it was still on my phone when I came here."

Conan spoke up. "So _that's_ how you had a photo of the Kid note. But if you knew, why didn't you tell us earlier?"

"I hadn't read up on the heist in a while. It was only when I was watching the news footage that I realized that _this_ heist was the first one and only one where'd there'd been a casualty. I looked through my research and found the name of the casualty was Mouri Ran. So I called you immediately, and when you refused to leave, I decided to do something about it. But it didn't work."

Agasa suddenly looked thoughtful. He said, "Maybe the reason it didn't work was because if Ran lived, then you, the person that saved her, wouldn't. Then you couldn't travel back in time and save her. There would've been an endless time loop, with no clear ending. So time took care of itself."

"That'd have to be it, then," said Akemi sadly.

Conan looked puzzled. "But why would Ran-neechan's surviving prevent you from being born?"

Akemi just looked at him and said, "Guess, Conan-kun. You're a famous detective in the future: a true legend."

Suddenly, Ai's face lit up. She approached Akemi and whispered her suspicions, and Akemi said, "You're right, Haibara-san!"

Then Hakase realized the truth. He talked to Ai, who confirmed his suspicions. Conan was still lost.

* * *

><p>You can guess what the big secret is. Next chapter, Akemi goes home, and I reveal her true name. There are two chapters left: the second half of the explanation, and the epilogue! In the meantime, review!<p> 


	11. Hi Dad!

Final chapter is here! It clears up the remaining action, though I'll have an epilogue, too. Look forward to Akemi going home!

* * *

><p>Chapter Eleven<p>

Conan was still thinking, but he still wasn't figuring out the truth. His mind went everywhere. Akemi saw this and took pity on him.

"You still don't know, Conan-kun?"

Conan shook his head. Akemi just said, "Then I guess I'll have to tell you. The truth is my father is the famous detective Kudo Shinichi. You see why now, Dad?"

Conan was speechless. It all made sense, though. The way Akemi deduced, and was as good at soccer as he was. She'd learned it all from him. It also explained why her parents had never claimed her: her parents didn't know she was here. The money she'd had was because of inflation: stuff in the future would cost more for the same amount. And the futuristic cell phone was self-explanatory.

Ai spoke up. "So your name isn't Fujimine Akemi, is it?"

"No. My true name is Kudo Ran. I was never told the origins of my name, but I heard my mother picked it because she admired someone who died that had that name. Now I know the truth."

Conan spoke up. "So who _is_ your mother?"

Akemi, or Ran, just smirked at him. "Someone you know well. I'll give you a hint, though. My name is _Kudo_ and not _Edogawa_, so what does that tell you about your antidote?"

"It'll be completed soon."

"Yes!" exclaimed Ran happily. "And about my mom?"

She's a teenager right now."

"Good. I won't tell you any more, though; you'll have to find out for yourself."

Ran got up and took a pad of paper. She wrote something on it, tore off the top sheet, and then sealed it in an envelope. Then she wrote: DO NOT OPEN UNTIL AFTER YOUR FIRST DATE. Then she said, "I won't tell you, but I wrote it in here. However," she grinned cheekily, "I _do_ know you, Dad, so I'm not giving it to you." Conan spluttered in outrage, but Ran ignored him. She gave it to Ai instead. "Haibara-san, I know you'll keep him out of this. After his first date, give it to him, and it'll confirm that he'll marry the girl he had the date with."

Ai pocketed the envelope, and resolved to keep it out of Conan's hands until the time in question. Then Ran said, "Oh, and by the way Dad, in ten years, when you realize I'm missing, go to Agasa-hakase's house and operate the off-limits machine that looks half-broken. Program it to send you to 8 PM next Saturday, and take me home."

"Why then? Why not now?"

"It can't be sometime in the past, or you'll never realize where I am. And I want it next Saturday and not now because I think everyone'd like to give me a going-away party. It'll take everyone's mind off of what happened last week."

Conan looked sad again, but nodded and said, "Very well, Ran-chan."

The next Saturday, all of Ran's (Akemi's) friends came to see her off. They partied all afternoon, and at 7:30, Agasa kicked them all out of the house. At 8:00, there was a firm knock on the front door. Ran went and opened it, and there stood Kudo Shinichi, 27 years old.

"Daddy! You came!" she ran up and hugged him tight.

"Of course I did! I missed you so much!" he said, hugging her back. Conan, Ai, and Agasa were watching the happy reunion, and all three were smiling, the tragedy from before completely forgotten. Then Shinichi let her go and walked in.

Shinichi told Agasa, "Thank you for taking care of her. Here." He gave Agasa a lot of old bills, bills that were printed well before the current timeline. "These should fully compensate you for taking care of her, and they shouldn't cause any problems in the future. I should know, after all."

He picked the happy Ran up, and walked over to Conan and Ai. He bent down to their level and said, "I'd forgotten how short I used to be." Ignoring the scowl on Conan's face, he said, "Thanks for taking care of her. You too, Haibara. I'm sure she enjoyed herself with you two, and you likely enjoyed having her around, too, if I remember correctly."

Then Conan asked, "Who's Ran's mother?"

Shinichi stood up and chuckled. "I'm not saying. After all, I never found out until I got the letter after my first date. And it showed the name of the girl I'd just dated for the first time. So you'll just have to find out the normal way, too. Though I will say one thing: it'll be someone you'll never expect." Then Shinichi walked out of the house, and the other three accompanied him. Shinichi pulled a device out of his pocket, and pushed a big red button on it. He and Ran waved at the other three until they both disappeared.

* * *

><p>A happy ending! The epilogue clears up some loose ends, like the contents of the letter. I probably won't write the date, so it'll probably be about Ran's coming home to the future. Review please!<p> 


	12. Epilogue: Homecoming

Final Chapter! For real this time! As I said before, this chapter takes place after Ran goes home. However, from some review I got, some of you are still confused about Ran's mother's identity, even though I practically spelled it out for you! For those who figured it out early, good for you!

* * *

><p>Epilogue<p>

_Ten Years Later_

A man carrying a sleeping little girl slowly walked back into his house. It was very late, and most of the street was asleep. The man was carrying the girl towards the stairs when suddenly the light flicked on, and the man's wife appeared, hands on hips.

"Shinichi, where were you this late at night?"

"Ran disappeared earlier, and after I realized she'd gone into Hakase's house and never returned, I realized she'd gone to the past, where I met her ten years ago."

"I remember that," said the woman. "She gave you the envelope with my name in it."

"Yeah. I've been picking her up, at the time she asked to be, when we saw her ten years ago."

The woman's expression softened. She then took the sleepy little girl from Shinichi. "It's hard to believe that actually happened, though. I guess Hakase's experiments have gone a little on the crazy side."

"Well, at least it worked. She got home safely. Be happy!"

"You know it's hard for me to be happy."

Shinichi walked up to her and said, "Oh, c'mon Shiho! Be happy for a change, it won't hurt you!" He grinned at her, before slowly kissing her gently.

Slowly, Shiho started smiling to herself, and she was still smiling when Shinichi broke off the kiss. "Feeling better now?" asked Shinichi gently.

"A little," she replied, though her face betrayed her.

"You're _very_ happy. So don't even try to hide it. Now, let's get to bed."

They both turned and walked up the stairs. When they passed by a table, a letter on it got brushed onto the floor, though neither noticed. It looked ten years old. It read:

_WARNING: If this is read before the time specified, or if it's read by someone else, then I WILL find out. So stop reading now if any of this is true. _

_Dad, you've probably guessed by now that my mother is Miyano Shiho._ _If you haven't, then you're in for a pleasant surprise. So, make sure that your life is a good one, and make her happy for me. _

_Your daughter, _

_Ran_

Things had come full circle now, and everyone was happy. Best of all, of course, was the fact that Ran was back.

* * *

><p>I told you I'd bring Ran back in the end. And here's my logic: Ran is like her mother, Shiho. Shiho and Akemi are both kind and thoughtful, though Shiho's was toned down a lot while working for the Organization. Akemi acted like Ran Mouri. So Ran Kudo is essentially a new Ran Mouri.<p>

I purposely didn't mark this as a ShinShi fic because that's not what it is. And that's because there's hardly any romance.

I hope everyone enjoyed this fic, and please review to tell me if you liked it or not! Just hit that review button, and look forward to future stories!

-CoolKid94

P.S. I also got a new DCW account, and I'm trying to get a DCTP account, so look for me there!


End file.
